Many existing software applications provide support functions that display suggestions, announcements, or other featured content to aid users. The display of featured content is often used to highlight new features of a software application, share new user tips, provide user instruction, etc. For example, during the boot process of Microsoft Word®, the application may display a message that greets a user and describes a user tip, e.g., a message describing an efficient method for organizing Word® documents into folders. To facilitate such support functions, some software applications include a static list of messages featuring certain topics that may be of interest to users. When a command to display a message is invoked, which may be during a boot process or upon receipt of a user command, a message is randomly selected from the static list and displayed to the user.
Although the above-described support functions are useful in displaying suggestions, announcements, or other featured content, existing systems have a number of drawbacks. For instance, existing software applications are limited to a fixed number of messages that can be displayed because the messages are hard-coded in the application files prior to the application's release date. The hard-coded messages are limited to concepts that were conceived prior to the application's release date. In addition, the messages may become ineffective because the display of each message is repeated over a period of time. In addition to having the potential of becoming ineffective, the messages may become incorrect over time. For instance, if a Web address or a help-line telephone number is contained in a message, the message may not communicate correct information if the displayed Web address or telephone number changes after the application's release date.
The above-described support functions also present other problems associated with the performance of a software application. For instance, if a software application selects, retrieves, and displays a text message during the boot process of the application, the duration of the boot process may be unnecessarily prolonged. The boot process is inhibited because of the need to use complex instructions that are associated with reading data from files stored on a hard drive. Thus, the above-described support functions work against the long-standing need to continually improve the speed and efficiency of the boot process of software applications.
There are also many other problems associated with featured content when it is displayed on a Web-based application. For example, if a Web page is configured to describe a particular software product, the Web page may be configured with a section having special instructions, announcements or other featured content related to the product. Unfortunately, many Web pages are static in nature, meaning the Web page only displays the content that is coded in the underlying markup language. Thus, if the instructions, announcements or other featured content needs to be updated, an administrator has to select new featured content and modify the underlying markup language of the Web page to display the new featured content. The process of manually updating featured content displayed on a Web page, especially when the modifications apply to a large volume of Web pages, is a labor intensive process that is subject to additional problems caused by human error.
As will be readily understood from the foregoing, there is a need for an improved system and method for selecting and displaying featured content. In addition, there is a need for a system and method for minimizing the delay time that is caused by the display of messages during the boot process of a software application.